Government of Yukon

Amendments to the Human Rights Act and the Vital Statistics Act were granted assent yesterday after they were passed by the Yukon Legislative Assembly.

Amendments to the Human Rights Act make it illegal to discriminate against a person on the grounds of gender identity and gender expression.

Changes to the Vital Statistics Act remove the requirement for sex reassignment surgery before a person can change the sex on their birth registration.

As of today, Yukoners will be able to change the sex on their birth registration to correspond with their chosen gender identity.

Within the next year, regulatory changes will come into effect that will allow Yukoners to obtain birth certificates with a gender-neutral marker.

Quotes

“I’m very proud to be able to say that transgender Yukoners now have the same rights and protections under these acts as the rest of their fellow citizens. We support a person’s right to self-determination of their gender identity. The amendments are part of our government’s commitment to support inclusiveness, equality and a respect for diversity in Yukon.”

–Minister of Health and Social Services Pauline Frost

“Today Yukon joins the rest of Canada in modernizing our laws to explicitly protect trans and gender-non-conforming individuals from discrimination. Legislation that protects people from racial, sexual or religious discrimination has been in place for many years; now all Yukoners are free to be who they are and know that their legal right to do so is protected.”

–Minister of Justice Tracy-Anne McPhee

Quick facts

Gender identity is our internal and individual experience of gender. It is our sense of being a woman, a man, both, neither, or anywhere along the gender spectrum. A person’s gender identity may be the same as, or different from, their birth-assigned sex.

Gender expression is how a person publicly presents their gender. This can include behaviour and outward appearance such as dress, hair, makeup, body language and voice.